Broken (Microflash)

Broken (Microflash)

Wrapping paper fell at Annie’s feet as she stared at the bowl in her hand.

Gold gleamed in the grout where the shards were joined. Whole again, but no longer the same. Better. Like she would be.

Phil was a dick, no denying that. But not worth staying broken over.

By Haragayato – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

These fifty word stories are addictive. After the one I wrote last week, and through which I discovered a bit more about Annie, a character in the novella I’m currently working on, this week’s prompt wass very tempting. Again.

Like the last time, I began with an image. This time, the image of a kintsugi piece was the first thing I saw when I closed my eyes.

According to Wikipedia, kintsugi (Japanese for ‘golden joinery’) or kintsukuroi (golden repair) is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with a special lacquer that is either dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver or platinum.

The artist views breakage and repair as something to celebrate. A part of the history of the piece. Artists often go so far as to break pieces, just so they can repair them with golden seams.

The philosophy behind kintsugi is similar to the Japanese philosophy of Wabi-sabi. Embracing the flawed or the imperfect.

In Japan, marks of wear and use are valued esthetically. Cracks and scars are an unavoidable part of life, both for objects and people.

When our heart is scarred, should we put it away and let no one near it? I believe every single scar is a sign that you allowed someone to come close enough to inflict it. There is always risk involved in doing so, and your willingness to take that risk, makes you that much more beautiful.

The same goes for cups and bowls, I suppose. When you love them well, and use them a lot, occasional chips and cracks are unavoidable. Rather than throwing them out, an artform like kintsugi gives these items a second lease on life. A chance to serve us for a while longer.

Another philosophy you could correlate it with is Mushin. No mind. It values concepts like non-attachment, acceptance of change, and fate. They’re a part of life.

If you ask me, the Japanese are right about this. And those kintsugi pieces sure do look gorgeous.

I encourage you to look up some photos of more pieces. They’re very hard to find with a CC license, so I only included this one image. But there are some amazing pieces out there.

Well, I’m adding *learning the art of kintsugi* to my bucket list. I’ll probably drive D crazy by breaking every piece of pottery we own, so I can put them back together with some of those gold or silver seams.

Huge thanks are owed to R. Jean Bell and @aksounder for helping me edit this little slip of story. You guys are the best, and I couldn’t have done it without you.